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THE CHILDREN'S 
SIX MINUTES 

BRUCE S. WRIGHT 



THE CHILDREN'S 
SIX MINUTES 



BY 

BRUCE S. WRIGHT 

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NEW XSJr YORK 
GEORGE H. DORAN COMPANY 



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COPYRIGHT, 1922, 
BY GEORGE H. DORAN COMPANY 



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THE CHILDREN'S SIX MINUTES. II 



PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 



JAN-9*23 

C1A60 273 5 



TO 

HARRIET 
ELIZABETH 

AND 

ROBERT 



INTRODUCTION 

For many years it has been my custom to give, 
every Sunday morning, a brief sermon to the 
boys and girls of my congregation. This sermon 
is never more than six minutes, often only three. 
As a result there has been a growing attendance 
of young people at our morning worship. They 
are thus made to feel that they are wanted, and 
have a part in the Church which all too often 
is looked upon as a Church solely for the 
grownups. No part of my ministry has given me 
greater delight and satisfaction than the thought 
that I am helping to establish in the lives of 
many boys and girls that habit so indispensable 
to a steady Christian experience, namely — the 
habit of Sunday morning worship. 

The Memory Texts and Memory Hymns, 
from the Methodist Episcopal Hymnal, sug- 
gested with each sermon are given for the reason 
that girls and boys gladly do memory work if it 
is definitely assigned them. 



CONTENTS 

PAGE 

HAPPY NEW YEAR 12 

GROWTH 14 

SNOW 16 

KINDNESS 18 

god's CALL . 20 

A HAPPY HOME 22 

SYSTEM 24 

A BOY FROM THE COUNTRY 26 

THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THING IN THE WORLD . . 28 

EASTER LIGHT 30 

APRIL 32 

HELPING FINGERS 34 

TWO R'S AND AN A 36 

CANDLE CHILDREN 38 

ALAS, THE MARKS 40 

A BLIND MAN WHO SAW 42 

CHOOSING A KING 44 

WORSHIP AND TOIL 46 

god's CLOCK 48 

THE HUMAN KODAK SO 

WATCH LESSONS 52 

WHAT DID YOU SEE? 54 

KNIFE LESSONS 56 

LETTERS 58 

A UNIQUE PSALM 60 

THE FATHER'S CARE 62 

ix 



x CONTENTS 

PAGE 

YOKES 64 

GOOD ADVICE ........ 66 

IF I WERE A BOY AGAIN . . . . . . 68 

ONE BY ONE . . 70 

COME 72 

LOVE AND LOYALTY 74 

KUMMOGOKDONATTOOTTAMMOCTITEAONGANNUN- . 

NONASH . . . . . . . . 76 

WHAT THE TREES SAID TO ME . . . . . 78 

BANKS 80 

WORK 82 

THE BIG STORE 84 

BREAD 86 

god's measure ........ 88 

SLEEP . . 90 

ON TIME 92 

DOORS ... ...... 94 

CHEAPEST AND BEST 96 

IN THE DARK 98 

THE STILL SMALL VOICE IOO 

THANKSGIVING 102 

MARBLES IN THE POCKET IO4 

THE FIRST MONTH 106 

HIM AND HYMN ........ 108 

THE CHRISTMAS TREE 1 10 

THE BEST WORD 112 

LAST BUT NOT LEAST 114 



THE CHILDREN'S SIX MINUTES 



12 The Children's Six Minutes 



HAPPY NEW YEAR 

HAPPY NEW YEAR, Juniors! 
The morning of the first day of every 
year we enter into a contest. We see who will 
be the first to give that day's greeting. Before 
I was awake this morning my boy ran into my 
room shouting, "Happy New Year! Happy 
New Year!" He won in the contest. 

Now, however, you are in Church and it is 
not proper for you to speak out loud, so I am 
able to get ahead of you. A Happy New Year 
to you, every one. 

Well, what will make this year a happy year 
for you? I will tell you. Let us take this word 
Happy, and instead of writing it across the page 
let us write it straight up and down. 

H stands for Helpful. You cannot have 
a happy year unless you are helpful. He 
who does not try to be helpful is never very 
happy. 

A for Active. I want your year to be full of 
activity. I hope you will be able to skate and 
slide down hill many days this winter, and that 



Happy New Year 13 

you will enter into all the spring and summer 
sports with zest and joy. 

P for Playful. All work and no play makes 
Jack a dull boy. You will want to do something 
other than play, of course. You will have some 
home responsibilities, but sandwiched in with 
the work may there be a good measure of play. 

P for Purposeful. Yes, early in life you 
should form a purpose. Two questions will help 
you gain that purpose. 1st — What is it that I 
want to do? 2nd — What is it that God wants 
me to do? 



Y for Youth. 



Helpful 

Active 

Playful 

Purposeful 

Youth. 



Memory Verse, Psalm 19: 14 

"Let the words of my mouth, and the medita- 
tion of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, 
my strength and my redeemer." 

Memory Hymn, [572] 

"Break, newborn year, on glad eyes break! 9 



14 The Children's Six Minutes 



GROWTH 

THIS second Sunday morning of the New 
Year I desire to talk to you about growth. 
The most important holiday afterthought is the 
thought of growth. You are going to grow every 
day of this year. Whenever I see a boy on his 
way to school, or on the field or gymnasium 
floor, running, romping, playing, I say to my- 
self, "Can it be possible that this restless, ener- 
getic lad was ever a quiet, helpless little babe in 
the cradle!" Yes, he was, but he has grown, 
and he is going to keep right on growing. 

It was said of the boy Jesus, "He grew." His 
growth was natural. There was nothing of 
precociousness in the childhood of Jesus. He 
grew, just as every boy grows. 

"A simple-hearted child was he, 
And he was nothing more; 
In summer days, like you and me, 
He played about the door, 
Or gathered, where the father toiled, 
The shavings from the floor." 

His growth continued. It did not stop with 



Growth 15 

childhood, but right on through boyhood, youth 
and manhood he kept growing. Best of all his 
growth was balanced. He grew physically, men- 
tally and spiritually. He had a sound body. He 
loved the out-of-doors. He companionshiped 
much with nature. Most of his graphic illustra- 
tions were taken from living, growing things. 
He talked, almost chiefly, about seeds, grain, 
harvests, trees, birds and living waters. Boys 
and girls, strive to grow. Be like your Master 
who grew inward, outward, and upward; self- 
ward, man ward, and Godward. "How can I 
grow?" you ask. I will tell you by passing 
on to you the secret as given by Maltbie Bab- 
cock. 

Go 

Right 

On 

Working 

Memory Verse, Luke 2 : 40 

"And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, 
filled with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon 
him." 

Memory Hymn [681] 

"Brightly gleams our banner! 9 



16 The Children's Six Minutes 



SNOW 

"/^OODY, goody, it's snowing!" This is 
VJ what I heard early yesterday morning. 
I think there were many other homes in which 
this shout of joy ushered in the day. It being 
Saturday the day was mostly free for playing in 
the snow. What did you do? You made a snow 
man. You built a snow fort or house. You had 
a snowball battle. You slid down hill. You 
played fox and geese, tracking one another 
across white fields and through the woods. You 
had a happy, wonderful day, I know you did. 

Have you ever thought how snow is made, 
and whence it comes? It is formed high in the 
air, from vapor, and comes down from the 
clouds, just like rain. Snowdrops are like people 
in one respect, no two are alike. If you will 
look at the snowflakes through a magnifying 
glass you will see a great variety of shapes. And 
all of them are beautiful. We talk about the 
sparkling beauty of diamonds and other precious 
gems; crystal snowflakes are more beautiful by 
far. If only we could keep them from melting 



Snow 17 

what a necklace or a setting for a ring a collec- 
tion of snowflakes would make! 

God's love is shown to us in the snow. For a 
fall of snow is like a great blanket, covering the 
tender roots and seeds, keeping them from freez- 
ing, assuring us of another harvest. As to-day 
you walk home through the snow let it speak 
to you of your Father's love. 



Memory Verse, Job 38; 22 

"Hast thou entered into the treasures of the 
snow?" 

Memory Hymn [355] 

"Love divine, all loves excelling." 



18 The Children's Six Minutes 



KINDNESS 

ONE day last week I saw a huge pair of 
bobs, heavily loaded with coal, being 
pulled up the street by two big, fine-looking 
horses. There were two men on the load. Their 
faces were black, but it was the dirt of honest 
toil, it was coal dust. They stopped the horses 
in front of the house directly across the street 
from me. I watched them with interest. The 
first thing one of the men did was to get down, 
take a board, go around to the front of the 
horses, lift up the heavy wagon tongue, place 
the board underneath it as a brace that the necks 
of the horses might be relieved of the strain of 
the wagon tongue. At the same time the other 
man took two warm blankets and covered the 
horses with them, tucking in the corners beneath 
the harness to make them tight and warm. 
Then the men set to work to carry the coal, 
basket by basket, into the cellar. That was 
kindness, was it not, to see that the horses were 
so well cared for on a cold winter day ! 

To my mind one of the finest acts of our city 



Kindness 19 

government is the way we are taught kindness 
to dumb animals and birds, by permitting them 
to make their homes and nests in the public 
park. What a delight it is to walk through the 
park and have the squirrels come running up so 
close, to eat from one's hand! That is kindness. 
How about kindness to people? Have you 
ever seen an older person walking along the 
street with a little child of three or four years 
of age, the child reaching up as far as he could 
to take the hand of the older person, the older 
one jerking, pulling, yanking, all the while say- 
ing, "Come now, hurry up, hurry up." That is 
not kindness, is it? 

"Howe'er it be, it seems to me 
Tis only noble to be good ; 
Kind hearts are more than coronets, 
And simple faith than Norman blood." 



Memory Verse, Ephesians 4: 32 

"Be ye kind to one another." 

Memory Hymn [554! 

"How sweet, how heavenly is the sight I" 



20 The Children's Six Minutes 



GOD'S CALL 

GOD calls each one of you. He asks you to 
give your life to him. He has a special 
work for you to do. You have heard of Wendell 
Phillips who did so much to make slavery un- 
lawful in America! Once, when Wendell was a 
boy fourteen years of age, he heard Lyman 
Beecher preach. In the course of his sermon 
the preacher said, "You belong to God." The 
boy Wendell thought that the preacher looked 
straight at him when he said that. He went to 
his home at the close of the service, climbed the 
stairs to his room, shut the door, knelt in prayer, 
saying, "O God, I belong to thee, take what is 
thine own." He heard and answered God's call. 
Many, many years before Wendell Phillips 
lived there was another boy. He worked in the 
temple. He was a youthful assistant to the min- 
ister. I suppose he ran errands for him, and 
performed any and every service about the 
temple the minister desired. One night, as 
usual, the boy went to bed and fell asleep. As 
he slept he heard a voice calling him. Now he 



God's Call 21 

was an obedient boy, and though it was hard 
for him to rouse himself from a sound sleep and 
leave his comfortable bed he did so. He ran 
to the minister saying, "Here I am, you called 
me, what do you want?" The minister said,. 
"No, my boy, I did not call you, go back to 
bed." The boy returned to his bed and again 
went to sleep. A second time, and even a third 
time he was called. Each time the faithful,, 
obedient lad leaped from his couch and ran to 
the minister. The third time it dawned on the 
mind of the minister that the voice the lad heard 
was the voice of God, calling him to himself 
and to his special service. Being a wise and lov- 
ing man he said to the boy, "Return to your bed, 
and if you hear the call again, say, ' Speak, Lord, 
for thy servant heareth.' " The boy did as in- 
structed and that night was forever memorable 
in his life, for that was the night God called 
Samuel and Samuel answered. 

Memory Verse, / Samuel 3: 10 

"And the Lord came, and stood, and called as at 
other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel an- 
swered, Speak, for thy servant heareth." 

Memory Hymn [674] 

"Hushed was the evening hymn/ 9 



H2 The Children's Six Minutes 



A HAPPY HOME 

THIS morning, the first thing, my boy said 
to me, "Tell me a story." This is the 
story I told him. Once upon a time, it was a 
long, long time ago, so long ago that we can 
scarcely realize how long, more than twenty- 
Jive hundred years ago. Well, once upon a time 
there was a home — homes then were quite the 
same in most ways as homes are now — there 
were children in that home. They played and 
were happy. And too, I suppose they had their 
misunderstandings, and sometimes the children 
quarreled. One day the children heard music. 
Looking up the street they saw a great company 
of men marching right toward them. They 
were soldiers. There were thirty thousand of 
them. In the center of the marching army were 
some oxen. The oxen were harnessed to a fine, 
new cart. On the cart was a chest, most beau- 
tifully carved and decorated. On the soldiers 
came. What was the amazement of the boys 
and girls when they stopped right in front of 
their house! Then the king, majestic in his 



A Happy Home 23 

bearing and gorgeously arrayed, came to their 
father and said, "I want to leave this chest here 
in your house. Take good care of it." The 
king's men brought the wonderful chest within, 
set it down, went out, and the army marched 
away. From that hour the home was a dif- 
ferent home. There was joy, and peace, and an 
utter absence of quarreling. Three months 
passed by. Then one day the king came again 
and took the chest away. But peace and happi- 
ness did not depart with the chest. The home 
was as happy and peaceful and free from bicker- 
ing through all the coming months as through 
the three when the wonderful chest was in the 
house. What was the chest? It was not the 
king's chest; it was the ark of God. You will 
find this true story in Second Samuel, the sixth 
chapter. 



Memory Verse, // Samuel 6: n 

"And the ark of the Lord continued in the house 
of Obededom the Gittite three months ; and the Lord 
blessed him, and all his household." 

Memory Hymn [671] 

"O happy home, where thou art loved the dearest." 



24 The Children's Six Minutes 



SYSTEM 

HERE are three books. I put them down 
like this, one beside the other, that is 
system. I throw them down carelessly, that is 
not system, it is not orderly. 

Here is a little box. Inside are letters, such 
as you see on the sign in front of the Church. 
Each letter has a space all its own. Now if A 
were put down at M, M at Z, and E at X, what 
a task it would be to pick out the letters and 
make a sign! 

One day I visited a Chinese school. Such lack 
of system, such disorderliness I never did see! 
Such noise I never did hear! They were all 
studying at the tops of their voices, sitting 
around in all sorts of ways, each trying to out- 
shout the other. Another day I went into a 
school here in our city. I saw the desks ar- 
ranged in systematic fashion, each child with a 
desk all his own. In front I saw a platform, 
with a larger desk, for the teacher. All was 
quiet and orderly. 

Here I have a package of envelopes. There 



System 25 

are fifty-two envelopes, one for each Sunday in 
the year. Each envelope is divided in the 
center. On one side I read, "For others." On 
the other half I read, "For ourselves." I need 
not tell you that these are church envelopes. 
In this way, this systematic way, we support our 
local church and pay to missions. We like to 
have the girls and boys, as well as older people, 
use these envelopes. The financial secretary 
of your church is just as willing to keep the 
records of young people who give but five cents 
in each side of the envelope as he is to keep the 
account of the man or woman who places five 
dollars in each side of the envelope every Sun- 
day. You see we want you to grow up sys- 
tematic and orderly in all your religious life. 
Our Master is pleased when we do our religious 
duties "decently and in order." 



Memory Verse, / Corinthians 16: 2 

"Upon the first day of the week let every one of 
you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered 
him." 

Memory Hymn [631] 

"Jesus shall reign where'er the sun? 



26 The Children's Six Minutes 



A BOY FROM THE COUNTRY 

ONCE upon a time there was a boy who 
lived in the country. It was said of him 
that he was "ruddy and withal of a beautiful 
countenance, and goodly to look to." I think 
that description fits a country lad. Well, this 
boy had brothers who were away from home in 
the army, fighting. One day the boy's father 
said to him, "I wish you would go down and 
see how your brothers are getting along, and 
take with you this present." The boy started 
on his journey. Now when he came to the 
place where the soldiers were encamped he saw 
a strange sight. A giant, from the opposing 
army, came out, blustering and issuing his chal- 
lenge to any one who would dare come against 
him. All seemed afraid of him. Even the big, 
strong soldiers would not do battle with him. 
Therefore this youth from the country volun- 
teered saying, "I will go out and fight him." 
They tried to dissuade him, but he insisted. 
Now he was a perfect shot with the sling. He 



A Boy from the Country 27 

chose five smooth stones from the brook. With 
one of these he prevailed over the giant. 

This lad, however, had some other things 
which stood him in better stead even than the 
sling and the stones. What were they? First, 
he had courage. He possessed what all the 
others lacked. Second, he had the ability to 
do one thing and do that one thing well. He 
could use a sling with the utmost accuracy. 
Third, he had confidence in himself and faith 
in God. He was not conceited, no, we do not 
like that. Rather he had self-confidence. 
Above all was this — "I come to thee in the 
name of the Lord of hosts." So said the lad 
from the country as he went to fight the giant. 
What was his name? It is a good name — 
David. 



Memory Verse, / Samuel 17: 45 

'Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a 
spear, and with a shield; but I come to thee in the 
name of the Lord of hosts." 

Memory Hymn [416] 

"Faith of our fathers/ 9 



28 The Children's Six Minutes 



THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THING IN THE 

WORLD 

THE most beautiful thing in the world! 
Now what is it? If you will lift your 
eyes just a little you will see the flowers on the 
table, but lift them higher than the flowers, 
higher than this pulpit, higher than the pipes 
of the organ, above the lights, above the arch, 
you will see the most beautiful thing in the 
world. Do you see it? It is the Cross. 

Do you know, girls and boys, that long ago 
the cross was the most repulsive thing in the 
world? It was odious. It had none of the 
charm and beauty that is now woven about it. 
But from the day that Jesus was crucified on 
the cross it took on new meaning, and it has 
, grown in charm and power until I think we all 
agree that it is the most beautiful sight in the 
world. 

Out in Colorado, high up the side of a moun- 
tain, where the snow never melts in the crevices, 
may be seen two long ravines, one straight up 
and down, the other straight across. The snow 



Most Beautiful Thing in the World 29 

is packed into those ravines all through the 
year, and lifting the eyes one may see upon the 
lofty mountain side the Holy Cross. 

In the summer seas, one of the things that 
mariners are guided by and that tourists look 
for, is the Southern Cross. There it is, fashioned 
by the position of the stars in the clear skies of 
the tropics. 

There are many men who wear a cross as a 
watch fob. There are women who wear a cross 
as a pendant about the neck. This is an out- 
ward sign of an inner devotion. The important 
thing, my dear young Christians, is to have the 
cross, its power and meaning, stamped upon 
one's heart. Is that where you wear the 
Saviour's cross? 



Memory Verse, / Corinthians i: 18 

"For the preaching of the cross is to them that 
perish foolishness; but unto them which are saved 
it is the power of God." 



Memory Hymn [143] 

"In the cross of Christ I glory. 



30 The Children s Six Minutes 



EASTER LIGHT 

THIS glad morning, when the world is so 
bright and beautiful, I want to talk to 
you about Easter Light. 

One of the most interesting men in our city 
is a man who goes about our streets with two 
long sticks. He is the lamplighter. Here he 
comes down the street! See how he pauses at 
each lamp post. With one stick he pulls the little 
chain that turns on the gas; with the other he 
sets the light going. He walks into the dark, 
but he leaves behind him miles of lighted streets. 
I hope we shall have always many streets 
lighted with gas, for I love to see the lamplighter 
dot his way along the streets and avenues with 
lighted periods. 

In the center of our city is the tall Electric 
Light Building. On the very tip of the tower is 
a high power electric light. It is lighted every 
evening from eight to eleven o'clock. Children, 
looking out of their windows as they go to bed, 
think that it is another star in the sky, it is so 
bright and steady. 



Easter Light 31 

More wonderful than any of these lights is 
the source of all light. It is the light that God 
provides for all of his children. The sun warms 
our fields, makes our gardens grow, and causes 
our harvests to prosper. The sun never fails us. 

Now there is another light, a light that is 
above even the sun. That is the light of Easter 
day. The tomb of death is no longer dark, for 
the resurrection light brightens every corner and 
shines in radiance through the open doorway. 
The light of Easter also lights up the windows 
of our heavenly home. When you are out of 
an evening it is not pleasant to return to a dark 
house. There is a wondrous welcome in lighted 
windows. That welcome God gives us in the 
light of Easter day. Christ, and his resurrec- 
tion, shine in the windows of heaven to greet us 
when we go home. 



Memory Verse, Matthew 28:1 

"In the end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn 
toward the first day of the week, came Mary Mag- 
dalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre." 

Memory Hymn [156] 

"Christ the Lord is risen to-day! 9 



32 The Children's Six Minutes 



APRIL 

I HAVE in my hand a small branch from a 
big tree. This branch is from an apple tree. 
Here are seen the tiny buds, the promise of the 
blossom, and after that the fruit. Have you ever 
seen an apple orchard in blossom? People rave 
about the cherry blossoms of Japan, and the 
fire trees, flaming red, of the Philippines. I 
have been in both countries, but I think there 
is no more beautiful sight in any country than 
the blossoming apple orchards of America. 

As you came to church this morning you saw 
all along the streets and avenues hundreds of 
trees like this branch, sending forth their first 
buds. What do these buds tell us? 

First of all they tell us of God. I do not see 
how any one can live through the awakening 
spring season and not think daily thoughts of 
God. Most people remember the Creator. 
Only one person has ever denied God. "The 
fool hath said in his heart, there is no God." 
He said it to himself, he did not dare speak it 
out loud. 



April 33 

In the second place, this branch tells us of 
God's Love. He, the loving Father of all people, 
makes blessed provision for the care and nurture 
of his children. He reminds us each year, in 
seedtime and harvest, of his boundless love. His 
love never fails. There have been many hun- 
dreds of years in the history of the world, yet 
each year has had its spring, its seedtime, and 
its Resurrection. Young people, let God's 
April speak to you. 

"When I am gone, somehow I hope that April 
Will typify my life, my faith, 
My hope of victory through the years, 
My steadiness of step, my clear and visioned eye. 
The early flowers, the birds 
Singing in the rain, 

The increasing light, the slowly opening buds, 
The almond blooms, the trees in vernal dress 
Are like the silver crown upon the head; 
A prophecy of heaven's summer time. 
Yes, even now it is the April 
Of my great immortality." 

Memory Verse, John n: 25 

"Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and 
the life." 

Memory Hymn [389] 

"Sow in the morn thy seed! 9 



34 The Children s Six Minutes 



HELPING FINGERS 

FOR three years I lived in Manila, Philip- 
pine Islands. Not far from my home was 
an orphanage for children who were deaf and 
dumb. Frequently these children were seen at 
different entertainments that were given about 
the city. One evening I went to attend a lecture 
in the Y.M.C.A. Right in front of me sat three 
children. They were very quiet and orderly. 
When the lecture began the boy who sat in the 
middle began to make his fingers go as fast as 
he could, the two children on either side watch- 
ing him intently. That center boy could hear, 
the other two were deaf. So he heard the lec- 
ture for them and told it to them by the finger 
language. 

One day a girl, coming out from school, got 
on a street car to go to her home. The car was 
crowded. She found a seat next to a woman 
who was heavily laden with bundles. She had 
all she could do to hold those bundles in her lap 
and keep them from falling and scattering their 
contents on the floor. Then a string about one 



Helping Fingers 35 

of the packages became untied. She struggled 
to get that string fastened securely. She had so 
many packages, her fingers were numb with cold, 
and again and again the string slipped just at 
the crucial time. Finally this school girl, who 
was an attractive, well-dressed girl, reached over 
and placed her nicely gloved finger on the ob- 
streperous knot. There was a grateful smile 
from the troubled woman and a hearty "Thank 
you." The next stop was the girl's home. As 
she went to the end of the car she passed a 
school friend who had watched the little inci- 
dent. She said to her, "I see you belong to the 
helping hand society." "No," replied the girl, 
"not the helping hand, just the helping finger 
society." This is a great society, girls and boys. 
Admission to it requires no initiation fee, no 
dues, simply the desire and the will to be helpful 
wherever you are. 



Memory Verse, Ecclesiastes 9: 10 

"Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with 
thy might." 

Memory Hymn [349] 

"Saviour, thy dying love thou gavest me! 9 



36 The Children's Six Minutes 



TWO R'S AND AN A 

DO you know what week this is? We have 
all sorts of weeks, don't we! There is 
Sunday School week, Go to Church week, Boy 
Scout week, Red Cross week, Social Welfare 
week, Hospital week, Y.W.C.A. and Y.M.C.A. 
week. Sometimes we wish we could have one 
week all to ourselves. 

Well, this is a special week. It is called Good 
Literature week. I want to tell you about Good 
Literature week by the use of these three letters, 
two R's and an A. 

The first R stands for Read. By all means 
read. There is no excuse for not reading, there 
is so much to read. Indeed I think that is the 
chief difficulty, we have too much, at least too 
much of that which is not good to read. Here's 
the bulky daily paper. When it is delivered 
there is a rush for it. The children want the 
comic supplement. So do some of the grown- 
ups. 

"A little nonsense now and then, 
Is relished by the wisest men." 



Two R's and an A 37 

That is true, and all right, but read something 
beside the comics. 

The second R is Remember. You cannot re- 
member all that you read. You can remember 
much. You should train your mind to remember 
the best. John Ruskin, one of the most gifted 
of Englishmen, said, "To this I owe all that I 
have of power, to the fact that when I was a 
boy my mother made me learn, every day, and 
remember, a verse of the Bible." 

Now the A. The A stands for, can you guess? 
It means Action. Read, remember what you 
read, and then apply it, put it into action. It is 
a fine thing to read a story like Pollyanna and 
get all excited over it. It is much finer to read 
Pollyanna and then put her spirit into action in 
the daily life of the home. 



Memory Verse, Psalm 119: 11 

"Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might 
not sin against thee." 

Memory Hymn [201] 

"How precious is the book divine/" 



38 The Children's Six Minutes 



CANDLE CHILDREN 

WHAT is this I have here? It is a candle 
in a candlestick. There is something 
about a candle we all love. We have our clear 
gas lights and our still more brilliant electric 
bulbs, but when the birthday comes we want a 
cake with candles on it. Think of this as a 
birthday candle and let it speak to you. 

First of all this candle speaks of Symmetry. 
How perfectly formed is this candle! It is 
smooth, there are no rough places that stand 
out like an ugly wart on one's face. Your life 
should have symmetry. God asks you to give 
heed to your physical, your mental and your 
spiritual duties that your life may be well 
rounded, a life of beautiful symmetry. 

Second, this candle stands for Fragrance. 
This is a fragrant candle. It is what is known 
as a "barberry" candle. There are some chil- 
dren we do not like to have around, they are 
surly, sulky and mean. There are others we 
dearly love to have with us at all times. They 
have what I call fragrance. They have the 



Candle Children 39 

fragrance of thought fulness, the sweetness of 
unselfishness. 

In the third place this candle means Erect- 
ness. How straight it stands in the candlestick! 
Stand up straight, girls and boys. Do not stoop. 
Do not hump yourself over your school desk. 
Walk erect. It means so much now, it will mean 
much more in later years. Some day, if you 
heed my word, you will be grateful that the 
preacher once said to you so emphatically that 
you could not forget, "John, Mary, stand up 
straight." 

Fourth, the candle stands for Light. It is 
useless until the wick is lighted. It burns for 
others. Your life is a light. Jesus wants all 
Christians to think of themselves as lights in 
the world. "Let your light shine." Be a lighted 
candle for the Lord. 



Memory Verse, Proverbs 20: 27 

"The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord." 

Memory Hymn [84] 

"The spacious firmament on high." 



40 The Children's Six Minutes 



ALAS, THE MARKS 

THERE is an old, old story about a father 
who had great difficulty in making his 
boy obey. The boy did wrong in spite of all 

* 

that the father could say or do. One day the 
father said to the boy, "Here is the shed door, 
now every time you do wrong I am going to 
pound a nail into the door." One by one the 
nails were pounded into the door, until it was 
literally filled with nails. The boy did not like 
the looks of the door, the thought of it began 
to trouble his conscience. So he spoke to his 
father about it. "Well," said his father, "I'll 
tell you what we will do. Every time you are 
obedient, every time you do a good deed rather 
than a wrong one, we will pull a nail out." The 
bargain was struck, and as, one by one, the nails 
were driven in, so, one by one, they were pulled 
out. 

Finally the day arrived when there was but 
one nail left. You can imagine the joy of the 
boy when he and his father went together to 
pull that nail out. With great glee the claws 



Alas, the Marks 41 

of the hammer were fastened about the head 
of Mr. Nail and, jerk, out he came. "Oh," ex- 
claimed the boy, "the marks are left." Yes, it 
was true, for every nail driven in and pulled 
out a mark was left, and it was an ugly looking 
door. "That is the sad thing about it all," said 
the father, "every time you do an evil deed a 
mark is left upon the life. It is never the same 
as if the evil deed had not been committed. It 
is fine that we have all the nails out, but it 
would have been much better had they never 
been driven in." 



Memory Verse, Jeremiah 2: 22 

"For though thou wash thee with nitre, and take 
thee much sope, yet thine iniquity is marked before 
me, saith the Lord God." 

Memory Hymn [348] 

"Take my life and let it be 
Consecrated, Lord, to theeP 



42 The Children's Six Minutes 



A BLIND MAN WHO SAW 

ONCE upon a time there was a boy who had 
a call to be a preacher. Now this boy 
was Scotch, and the fondest ambition of a Scotch 
mother is that her son shall become a minister. 
You may believe that this particular lad's 
mother was very, very happy. So George 
(George was his name) went to school. He was 
not a brilliant student, but he was faithful, he 
did his work well and passed his grades. One 
day he noted some difficulty with his eyes. The 
trouble increased rather than diminished. Be- 
fore he had finished his education, while he was 
yet a young man, he became totally blind. He 
was greatly discouraged. He was tempted to 
give up entirely, stop trying to do anything. 
Certainly he could not be a successful preacher 
if he was blind. Who would listen to him? 
How could he do his work? 

However there was another voice inside him, 
the voice of courage, hope and faith. It was 
the voice of the Lord that bid him go right on 
with his plans. He heeded the urge of the inner 



A Blind Man Who Saw 43 

voice. He was ordained. People loved him, 
and flocked to hear him preach. Though his 
natural vision was darkened, his spiritual vision 
was so much brighter. Though he could not 
look upon the beautiful sights of the world, he 
had eyes to see more clearly the wonderful 
things of the soul. His fame spread through- 
out Edinburgh, Scotland, England, and all the 
English-speaking world, and everywhere he was 
known and loved as the blind preacher. 

This blind preacher wrote many hymns. The 
greatest hymn he ever wrote, and one of the 
finest in all the English language, is the Memory 
Hymn for to-day. 

His name? Well, I almost forgot that. His 
name is George Matheson. 



Memory Verse, Isaiah 42: 16 

"I will bring the blind by a way that they knew 
not; I will lead them in paths that they have not 
known: I will make darkness light before them, and 
crooked things straight. These things will I do unto 
them, and not forsake them." 

Memory Hymn [481] 

"0 love that wilt not let me go." 



44 The Children's Six Minutes 



CHOOSING A KING 

WHAT would you do if you were asked to 
select a young man who should some 
day be president of the United States? What 
tests would you apply? Would you look upon 
the clothes that he wore? Would you consider 
the color of his hair? Would you insist that he 
should be of a certain height? Once upon a 
time there was a good and wise man who was 
asked to choose a king for his people. He 
started on his journey in search of the most 
promising youth he could find. By and by he 
came to a home where there were many boys. 
One of these boys stood before him. He was 
tall. He was well formed. He had a good bear- 
ing. Surely, thought the king-chooser, here is 
just the man. But something inside him, "the 
still small voice" I think it was, said to him, 
"No, do not choose him, he is not the one." 
The father then called a second son. Like the 
first he was goodly to look upon. The great 
man commissioned to choose a king was about 
to select this one when the same voice inside 



Choosing a King 45 

warned him to wait. A third son was sum- 
moned. A third time the voice said, "No, he 
is not the one." 

How chagrined the father must have been to 
have all seven of his splendid sons rejected! 
All? No, not all. For the king-chooser said, 
"Have you no more sons?" "Yes, I have one 
other, but he is young and the keeper of the 
sheep. I am sure you would not think of him as 
a king." "Nevertheless," said the prophet, 
"send for him." And he came, the youngest, the 
most unlikely one of all, at least so the father 
and the brothers thought. But the voice within 
said, "This is the one, choose him." You will 
want to read all of this wonderful story and you 
will find it in your Bible, First Samuel the six- 
teenth chapter. 

Memory Verse, / Samuel 16: 7 

"And the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his 
countenance, or on the height of his stature; for the 
Lord seeth not as man seeth ; for the man looketh on 
the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on 
the heart." 

Memory Hymn [354] 

"O jor a heart to praise my God! 9 



46 The Children's Six Minutes 



WORSHIP AND TOIL 

ONE day about one hundred years ago a 
little boy named Jean stood by his father's 
side watching the setting sun sink into the 
waves of the sea. The glory of the scene stirred 
his boyish enthusiasm and he poured out his 
heart in an ecstasy of joy. The father rever- 
ently took off his cap and said, "My son, it is 
God." The boy never forgot that word, "It is 
God." 

Jean came of a peasant family, so he had to 
take his place in the field and earn his bread 
"by the sweat of his brow." On Sundays the 
fields were forsaken and the family went to the 
village church where the father was the leader 
of the choir. After church friends and rela- 
tives sometimes came home to spend the after- 
noon with the family. One Sunday, soon after 
the return from church, the bent figure of an 
aged peasant slowly made his way along the 
road. There was something about the figure 
that struck the boy Jean. He took a piece of 
charcoal and hurriedly drew a sketch upon the 



Worship and Toil 47 

wall. Every movement and attitude was so 
perfectly depicted that everybody laughed — 
everybody but the father. He sensed the gift 
possessed by his boy, whose growing talent he 
had been watching. "My Jean/' he said, "I 
will no longer hinder you from learning that 
which you are so anxious to know." 

Jean Francis Millet, for such is his full name, 
became the artist of peasantry. He never made 
any other boast. His character was of the 
highest. He had a firm faith in God. He be- 
lieved in the Bible as the Word of God. He 
looked upon his use of the brush as preaching 
upon canvas the purity and truth he believed. 

"The Angelus" is the name of the best known 
picture that he painted. It shows two workers 
in a potato field, a man and a woman, who hear 
from the near-by village the faint tones of the 
Angelus bell calling them to prayer. They 
pause, stand erect, bow their heads and wor- 
ship. It is a beautiful picture. I hope you have 
a copy framed in your room. 

Memory Verse, Luke n: i 

"Lord, teach us to pray*" 

Memory Hymn [495] 

"From every stormy wind that blows! 9 



48 The Children's Six Minutes 



GOD'S CLOCK 

DO you own a watch? If you do not now 
you will some day. I have a friend whose 
watch came to him in this wise. His father 
said to him, "When you graduate from High 
School I will give you a watch." 

Is there a "town clock" where you live? Is 
it dependable? Do men set their watches by it? 
Do people, passing it, glance up to see if they 
are late? In the village where I began my 
ministry the Baptist tower held the town clock. 
I lived but a few doors away. I went to bed by 
it. I studied by it. I was wakened by it. Even 
now, and many years have passed since then, I 
can hear its clear bell strike the hours. 

The strangest clock I ever saw was in China. 
I went up the West River to the city of Canton. 
I was carried through the narrow, smelly, 
crowded streets to the top of a little hill at the 
city's edge. There, on the very tip-top I saw 
the "Water Clock." I read, "This water clock is 
a most ancient, authentic, celebrated and sacred 
relic of Kwong Tung Province, over 1,300 years 



God's Clock 49 

old. It was erected on the top story of the north 
Worshiping Tower which was built by Chin To, 
King of the South of China." 

It was a strange, crude affair, run by water. 
I stood and looked at it and thought, "This 
clock was running when George Washington 
was president ; it was running when Christopher 
Columbus sailed on his great voyage of discov- 
ery; long years, long centuries before that it 
was built." 

But there is a clock surpassing all others. I 
call it God's clock. It is the Sun. Since time 
began God's clock has kept time. It is the cen- 
tral clock of our universe. It regulates all 
others. It does not have to be wound. God 
has seen to that. How can we help worshiping 
the God who has made such a clock! 



Memory Verse, Psalm 74: 16 

"The day is thine, the night also is thine; thou 
hast prepared the light and the sun." 

Memory Hymn [47] 

"Sun of my soul, thou Saviour dear' 9 



50 The Children's Six Minutes 



THE HUMAN KODAK 

I WONDER how many of you have a kodak. 
Yes, many of you own one. What a won- 
derful little machine a kodak is! First we buy 
a film, then we open the kodak and place the 
film. Now pull the paper over to the empty 
roll and fasten, close the kodak and begin to 
wind. Oh, here you are, No. 1. The day is 
clear, for we must have a clear day to get the 
best picture. We hold the kodak very steady, 
then snap, we have it. Next we pull a little 
slide in the back, take a pencil and write down 
the date and name. Let me see, what was that 
picture? Oh, yes, " Chrysanthemum (is that the 
way to spell it?) exhibition." Next the films are 
developed, and the kodak pictures are complete, 
all but pasting them in a big book. 

For all that the kodak is a whole lot of fuss, 
isn't it? But, do you know, each one of us has 
a kodak God has given him which works itself. 
We have the open circle through which the pic- 
tures are taken, our eyes, and beyond the eyes, 
in the brain, are thousands of films. We start 



The Human Kodak 51 

out in the morning and the moment we open our 
eyes we begin exposing those films. We do not 
have to do any clicking for these pictures, one 
after another, click, click, click, and they are 
developed as fast as they are taken. 

If you should say to a man who has reached 
three score years and ten, "Tell me the clearest 
picture you can remember," he would not show 
a picture that was taken yesterday, or last week, 
or last year. He would turn back the pages of 
his memory book fifty, sixty years. The clear- 
est pictures he possesses are those that were 
snapped in his boyhood. Every day you are tak- 
ing pictures that are going to remain with you 
as long as you live. Let us resolve, girls and 
boys, that as we go out each morning and our 
human kodak begins clicking, we shall take only 
pictures that are true, pure and clean. 



Memory Verse, Proverbs 4: 25 

"Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eye- 
lids look straight before thee." 

Memory Hymn [i] 

"O for a thousand tongues to sing 
My great Redeemer's praise," 



52 The Children's Six Minutes 



WATCH LESSONS 

MY grandfather was a foreman in a tan- 
nery for a great many years. Finally, 
as he was approaching seventy years of age, he 
left the tannery to retire to a quieter life. The 
men who worked in his department had a real 
affection for him. As an expression of that es- 
teem they presented him, on his last day with 
them, a beautiful, solid gold watch. On the 
inner cover they engraved his name, the date, 
and the occasion of the presentation. When my 
grandfather died the watch became my father's 
possession. Then upon my father's death the 
watch came to me. What a joy it is to carry 
such a watch ! Here are some lessons my watch 
teaches me. 

The case is but the outside. It is nice to have 
a gold case, it looks so well. But that does not 
make the watch keep any better time. It would 
keep just as accurate time if the case were iron. 
You see it is the inside that counts. It is the 
same with life. The soul is the important part 
of us. 



Watch Lessons 53 

Now here is the tiny second hand. It rushes 
around, jumping, hurrying, fussy, as though it 
were doing the whole job. But you cannot tell 
time by the second hand. Knock it off and the 
watch goes right on running. 

Here's the minute hand. How big, and 
solemn and serious it looks! Surely the minute 
hand is important. What time is it? Fifteen 
minutes after. Fifteen minutes after what? 
The minute hand does not say. 

Ah, here's the hour hand. Strong, steady, de- 
pendable. The hour hand does not move very 
fast, you cannot see it move. It makes no fuss 
at all, but you can tell time by the hour hand. 
Let your life be like the hour hand of the watch, 
so true and steady that other girls and boys who 
daily watch you may know life's time, may never 
be led astray. 



Memory Verse, / Corinthians 15: 58 

"Therefore, be ye steadfast, immovable, always 
abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye 
know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord." 

Memory Hymn [385] 

"Soldiers of the cross, arise I" 



54 The Children's Six Minutes 



WHAT DID YOU SEE? 

A FEW days ago I made a trip on the train. 
When I returned home one of the first 
questions my little boy asked me was, "What 
did you see?" I shall tell you what I told him. 

Looking out of the car window I saw an im- 
mense field, acres and acres, and in that field 
were planted hundreds, yes thousands, of little 
trees. I inquired of the man who sat next me, 
"What are those little trees for?" He said, 
"They are growing those little trees to reforest 
the desolate, burned over regions of the Adiron- 
dacks." I said to myself, "That is just what we 
are doing in my church. We are growing girls 
and boys to reforest the needy places of the 
earth." I inquired, "How long do they keep 
those little trees there?" "Not very long," said 
he, "just long enough to give them a good start. 
Then they transplant them." Again I said to 
myself, "That is exactly what we do. We keep 
the girls and boys only a little while, then they 
are transplanted." 

I had another question. "When they trans- 



What Did You See? 55 

plant these little trees how do they plant them, 
haphazard, every-which-way?" "No, indeed," 
was his answer, "they are planted in rows, and 
close together." Exactly what we are doing in 
our church, I thought. We are growing our 
girls and boys, and we are keeping them close 
together, because they are such a help to one 
another, and there is great inspiration in 
numbers. 

Looking out of the train window at those 
trees of future forests, I thought of the verse in 
Isaiah, "The mountains and the trees shall 
break forth before you into singing, and all the 
trees of the field shall clap their hands." I can 
hear the mountains and the hills of the Adiron- 
dacks singing because of the growing trees, and 
I hear the mountains and the hills of earth sing- 
ing because of the millions of growing girls and 
boys who shall reforest the desolate places of 
earth. 

Memory Verse, Psalm 92 : 13 

"Those that be planted in the house of the Lord 
shall flourish in the courts of our God." 

Memory Hymn [677] 

"Saviour, like a shepherd lead us" 



56 The Children's Six Minutes 



KNIFE LESSONS 

I HAVE here a knife. It was given me by a 
friend, a token of his affection and esteem, 
when I went aboard the steamer in Manila, 
Philippine Islands, to return to the homeland. 
All these years since then the knife has been on 
my study desk, daily teaching me. What lessons 
does this knife teach? 

First of all the knife tells me of Strength. 
The most important part of this knife is what 
I call the backbone. It is the main portion of 
the knife to which all the blades are fastened, 
as well as the polished pearl handle. This would 
be a weak and useless knife did it not have a 
backbone. It says to me every day "Be strong, 
stand up, have convictions, be steadfast." 

Lesson number two, Discipline. This knife 
has been subjected to many trials and tests. 
The steel of which these blades are made had 
to go through a hard, hot, trying process be- 
fore they were tempered and fit to take an edge 
and hold it. Sometimes I rebel about certain 



Knife Lessons 57 

processes of the days, then I think of my knife 
and learn from it the lesson of discipline. 

The third lesson this knife teaches me is Neat- 
ness. Now I can picture the man who bought 
this knife. As he went into the store, he stood 
before the glass show case wherein were dis- 
played scores of different kinds of knives. 
There were dark knives and light knives, big 
knives and little knives. His eye caught this 
knife, with its graceful lines, its smooth pearl 
handle, and he said, "That is a neat knife, I'll 
take that one." People are attracted to you by 
your neatness. 

The fourth lesson is Usefulness. Really it is 
quite wonderful the variety of uses to which this 
knife can be put. Here is a big blade, and a 
small blade; here is a blade with a file; folded 
in the back is a tiny pair of scissors. So the 
great test of life is its usefulness. 

Memory Verse, / Corinthians 9: 22 

"I am made all things to all men, that I might by 
all means save some." 

Memory Hymn [545] 
"Jesus calls tts" 



58 The Children's Six Minutes 



LETTERS 

WHO is the most popular man in your 
town? The Postman. Who is the man 
who is most eagerly looked for as he comes down 
the street? The Postman. Who receives, at 
every door where he stops, a most cordial wel- 
come? The Postman. I wonder if the thrill of 
getting a letter will ever pass away. When you 
come home from school the first thing you do is 
to look on the hall table to see if the Postman 
has brought you a letter. It is the same when 
we grow up. No matter how many letters we 
may receive we never get over the keen delight 
at having the Postman bring us letters. 

Last Sunday afternoon you wrote your grand- 
mother. You said, "Only two months more of 
school and then I am coming to see you, and 
all the summer vacation I am going to play 
around your big house, and in the barn, and 
across the fields, and through the woods." On 
your way to school Monday morning, you posted 
that letter. Monday afternoon you began look- 
ing for an answer. Tuesday you were impatient 



Letters 59 

that you had not received a reply. Wednesday 
you were almost in tears, though, had you only 
stopped to think you would have known that it 
takes two days for a letter to get to your grand- 
mother, she lives so far away. Thursday the 
answer came. "I am eager for vacation time to 
come so that you, my dear grandchild, may be 
here with me." 

I have here an unusual book. It is a book of 
letters. All the letters were written by a big 
man, a father, to little children, his children. 
The man who wrote them was Theodore Roose- 
velt. What fortunate children were his! Not 
many fathers take time to write to their children 
as did our great president. Oh, for more fathers 
like Roosevelt! Oh, for appreciative children, 
who will not only gladly receive, but cheerfully 
write, letters of love! 



Memory Verse, / John 2: 12 

"I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known 
him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, 
little children, because ye have known the Father." 

Memory Hymn [544] 

"I love to tell the story. 79 



60 The Children's Six Minutes 



A UNIQUE PSALM 

I WANT to tell you about a unique Psalm. 
Which Psalm is it? It is the 1 19th. 

The 119th Psalm is unique because of its 
length. It is the longest of the Psalms. It has 
one hundred and seventy-six verses. 

It is unique because of its arrangement. It is 
divided into twenty-two equal parts. Each part 
contains eight verses. 

Again, the 119th Psalm is an acrostic, or an 
alphabetical Psalm. It is built around the 
Hebrew alphabet. Each of the twenty-two por- 
tions begins with one of the letters of the 
Hebrew alphabet. 

The Psalm is unique because of its content. 
It is given over entirely to a consideration of the 
law and commandments of God. Indeed, if you 
will read the Psalm, you will find that every 
verse says something about the precepts, or the 
statutes, or the commandments, or the word of 
God. 

The 119th Psalm contains some of the verses 
with which we are most familiar. "Wherewithal 



A Unique Psalm 61 

shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking 
heed thereto according to thy word." "Open 
thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous 
things out of thy law." "Thy word is a lamp 
unto my feet, and a light unto my path." 

The Psalm reaches its highest point, and finds 
its fullest expression in the 94th verse, three 
words, "I am thine." 

Young people, I want you to read this 119th 
Psalm, and when you come to the 94th verse 
I want you to stop and say over very earnestly, 
very prayerfully, "I am thine." And may you 
be His for all time is my prayer. 



Memory Verse, Psalm 119: 94 

"I am thine, save me; for I have sought thy 
precepts." 

Memory Hymn [342] 

"Lord, I am thine, entirely thine/ 9 



62 The Children's Six Minutes 



THE FATHER'S CARE 

I HAVE here a nut. It is a pecan. It grows 
in our southern states. It is a well formed 
nut with a hard shell. This nut I have is 
cracked. I open it and I notice just inside a 
thin, brown coating that covers the meat. I 
touch this coating to my lips. It is bitter and 
causes me to pucker my lips. This is the 
Creator's blessed provision for the protection of 
the nut in its growing stage. The bitter coating 
keeps insects and pests away. 

On my way to church this morning I looked 
up and saw a long piece of yarn flying across 
the street at a rapid rate. I wondered what 
could cause that. Then at the front end of the 
yarn I saw a bird. The bird flew to the gable 
of a big house. There, in a protected corner, 
she was making her nest. The yarn was to be 
woven into her new spring house. So God 
gives instinct to birds and all his creatures as a 
mark of his loving care. 

The most delicate, sensitive portion of your 
body is the eye. When I consider how tender 



The Father's Care 63 

and open to harm the eye is I wonder that so 
many of us go through life with our eyes unhurt. 
But God has provided a sleepless protection for 
our eyes. There is a guard, always on duty. 
Whenever danger comes near, that guard, our 
eyelid, closes and effectively wards off impend- 
ing trouble. 

We started with the lowest form of life, an 
inanimate nut. Now we come to the highest, 
the soul of man. For in each one of you there 
is something eternal, something akin to God 
himself. The name we give that eternal spirit 
is the soul. For the protection of our soul God 
gives us faith, a sense of right and wrong, con- 
science, the still small voice. He surrounds us 
with Christian homes, the Church, helpful fel- 
lowship, the means of grace. All these things 
are a protection for the soul. 

Memory Verse, Matthew 6: 28, 29 

"Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; 
they toil not, neither do they spin; and yet I say 
unto you, that even Solomon in all his glory was 
not arrayed like one of these." 

Memory Hymn [517] 

"While thee I seek, protecting power." 



64« The Children's Six Minutes 



YOKES 

A YOKE is a help, not a hindrance. Our 
first thought is that a yoke is burden- 
some. A little study reveals to us the great use- 
fulness of the yoke. 

Have you ever seen a yoke of oxen? What 
heavy, slow-moving creatures they are! But 
they are pullers of heavy loads. These loads 
could not be drawn by them were they not 
yoked together. 

Now there are different kinds of yokes, that 
is, there are many ways of rendering easier the 
carrying of heavy loads. For example, there is 
the Oriental way. First, there is the manner in 
which one man will carry a heavy load. He 
takes a pole, on each end of the pole hangs a 
rope. Then he divides his load, fastening half 
of his load to either rope. He gets beneath the 
pole, which is shaped to fit his shoulder, lifts, 
and off he trots as easily and jauntily as can be. 
Sometimes the load is too heavy for one man. 
He then summons a companion. They get a 
longer, heavier pole, with a much stouter rope. 



Yokes 65 

This time they do not divide the load, rather 
they keep it together. They fasten the rope se- 
curely about it, and then tie it about the pole. 
The men stoop, one at each end of the heavy 
pole. They stand up straight, the load is lifted 
from the ground, only a few inches perhaps, but 
enough to clear the ground, then, singing and 
laughing, keeping perfect time each with the 
other, they swing down the street. It is in- 
credible the heavy loads they carry. I could 
not believe my eyes when I looked upon some 
of them. 

Jesus perfectly understood the helpfulness 
and value of the yoke. He made it most beau- 
tiful in that he told his followers that he would 
'help them, that he would carry his part of the 
burden, that he would share with them the other 
side of the yoke. 

Memory Verse, Matthew n: 29-30 

"Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I 
am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest 
unto your souls. For my yoke is easy and my 
burden is light." 

Memory Hymn [449] 

"My times are in thy handP 



66 The Children's Six Minutes 



GOOD ADVICE 

MOST of us, men and women as well as 
girls and boys, do not take kindly to 
advice. We very much prefer that people keep 
their advice to themselves. There are times, 
however, when we are compelled to listen to 
advice, because of the source. Here is a bit of 
advice that commands our attention. It is 
from the great English novelist, Charles Dick- 
ens. 

Charles Dickens' youngest boy, Edward, left 
home when he was sixteen years of age and 
went to Australia. His father wrote him a 
parting letter, which is worth while for all boys, 
whether or no they leave home. In that letter 
the great Dickens said, 

"I put a New Testament among your books 
for the very same reasons and with the very 
same hopes that made me write an easy ac- 
count of it for you when you were a little child. 
Because it is the best book that ever was or ever 
will be in the world. And because it teaches you 
the best lessons by which any human creature 



Good Advice 67 

who tries to be truthful and faithful to duty 
can possibly be guided. As your brothers have 
gone away, one by one, I have written to each 
, such words as I am now writing to you and have 
entreated them all to guide themselves by this 
book, putting aside the interpretations and in- 
ventions of men. Never abandon the wholesome 
practice of saying your own private prayers, 
night and morning. I have never abandoned it 
myself, and I know the comfort of it." 

Now that we are done reading this letter it 
does not sound like advice at all, does it. It is 
all so wholesome and sturdy that we feel like 
speaking right out loud, "Thank you, Mr. 
Dickens, thank you very much." 



Memory Verse, Psalm 119: 9 

"Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his 
ways? By taking heed thereto according to thy 
word." 

Memory Hymn [205] 

"Lantp of our feet" 



68 The Children's Six Minutes 



IF I WERE A BOY AGAIN 

CHICAGO UNIVERSITY, one of the great 
schools of America and the world, re- 
ceived its impetus from the tireless energy and 
brilliant leadership of its great President, Dr. 
Harper. After his death there was found among 
his papers a memorandum which read as follows : 

"If I were a boy again I would strive to find 
out from goods books how good men lived. 

"If I were a boy again I would study the Bible 
even more than I did. I would make it a mental 
companion. The Bible is a necessity for every 
boy. 

"If I were a boy again I would more and 
more cultivate the company of those older whose 
graces of person and mind would help me on 
in my good work. I would always seek good 
company. 

"If I were a boy again I would study the life 
and character of our Saviour, persistently, that 
I might become more and more like unto him." 

Now President Harper was a great, wise and 
good man. If he felt that he would do certain 



If I Were a Boy Again 69 

things were he a boy again, surely the rest of 
us could improve upon our boyhood years had 
we the chance. 

If I were a boy again I would be more atten- 
tive to Church and Sunday School and the 
things that were taught me there. If I were a 
boy again I would get my day school lessons 
with greater care. If I were a boy again I 
would be more obedient to and more thought- 
ful of my parents. 

Why should I talk like this, for I cannot be 
a boy again? But you boys have your boyhood. 
It is a present reality. Let President Harper 
teach you. Be the boy he pictures. 



Memory Verse, Psalm 103: 1-5 

"Bless the Lord, O my soul . . . who satisfieth 
thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is 
renewed like the eagle's." 

Memory Hymn [678] 

"By cool Siloam's shady rill! 9 



70 The Children's Six Minutes 



ONE BY ONE 

HERE is this great church building. It is a 
beautiful structure, is it not? It is so 
substantial, it has stood here so many years, we 
take it so for granted that it seems as though 
it had always been here. But there was a day 
when the ground upon which this building 
stands was vacant ground. Then men came 
with picks and shovels, wagons and plows, and 
set to work. They laid the foundations, stone 
upon stone. Then the walls rose, stone upon 
stone. Then the spire, stone upon stone, until 
the very peak was reached, for our church is 
stone from the foundation to the top of the 
spire. How were these thousands of stones put 
in place? One by one. 

Think also of the roof of our church. It is 
a tile roof. How in the world did they get all 
those tile up on the roof and fitted in place? 
Did some man who was very strong stand back 
and throw a handful of tile at the roof? No, it 
was done one by one. 

To-day it is snowing outside. Some one has 



One by One 71 

figured that in a square mile one foot of snow- 
would weigh 65,000 tons. If you should take 
sleds and horses, and put a ton of snow on 
each sled, and arrange the horses and sleds in 
a procession, the sleds carrying the snow from 
that square mile of territory would reach from 
Philadelphia to New York, and beyond New 
York, straight up the Hudson, almost to Albany. 
That is only one square mile, and there are thou- 
sands of square miles every winter covered with 
snow. How does this snow come? In tiny 
flakes, one by one. 

It is the same with life. God gives us many 
days, but he sends them one at a time. He also 
sends us many duties, but they do not come 
en masse. He is good and sends them one by 
one. 



Memory Verse, Matthew 6: 34 

"Take therefore no thought for the morrow, for 
the morrow shall take thought for the things of 
itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof." 

Memory Hymn [419] 

"One more day's work for Jesus." 



72 The Children's Six Minutes 



COME 

THERE is not a girl or boy here this morn- 
ing who does not feel within the desire to 
do good. The drawing power of good — in other 
words, the drawing power of God. He it is who 
says to you, "Come." 

I want to illustrate this by a few things which 
I have here. The first is this magnet. And 
here are some small nails. These tiny nails rep- 
resent girls and boys of about eleven or twelve 
years of age. I apply the magnet to these nails 
and I lift up — can you see me — twenty-five or 
thirty nails. You see it is a great deal easier 
to respond to the drawing power of good, to 
answer the great "Come," in girlhood and boy- 
hood. 

Now here are some nails that are a little 
larger. I can lift up only five or six of these 
larger nails. They represent young people of 
eighteen or nineteen. As one gets older he does 
not hear as readily, at least he does not answer, 
Christ's blessed "Come." 

Next we have some nails still larger. The 



Come 73 

magnet will lift up only one or two of these. 
They stand for men and women in mature life. 
Oh, if one has not responded to Christ's call in 
childhood or youth, it becomes increasingly diffi- 
cult as the years pass. How seldom, how very 
seldom, does an aged one answer the divine call 
and give his heart to the Lord ! 

Here is a very large nail, and it is rusty. In- 
deed it is literally coated with rust. This repre- 
sents the life that is deep in sin. For long years 
this life has been persisting in his evil ways. As 
the magnet must be very strong to penetrate 
the rust and grip the nail, so Christ's call must 
be strong and loving to reach the sinful soul. 
Christ can save "from the uttermost," but how 
much better it is to say in early youth, "I hear 
thy voice, my Lord. Gladly I come." 



Memory Verse, Matthew n: 28 

"Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy 
laden, and I will give you rest." 

Memory Hymn [462] 

"In heavenly rest abiding! 9 



74 The Children's Six Minutes 



LOVE AND LOYALTY 

ONCE upon a time, long, long ago, there was 
a man who had a wife and two sons. 
There was a famine in the land where he lived, 
so he said to his wife and sons, "We will journey 
down to another country where the crops have 
not failed. There shall we find plenty to eat, 
and there will we make our home." 

So the family moved to the strange land where 
they prospered and were happy. In time the 
boys grew to young manhood and married young 
women of the new land where they dwelt. Then 
sorrow entered their homes, as sorrow comes 
sooner or later to every home. The father and 
the two sons died, and the mother and her two 
daughters-in-law were left alone. The mother, 
whose name was Naomi, said, "I am going back 
to the land where I lived in former days, back 
to the people of my girlhood." The young 
women said, "We shall go with you also." 
"No," replied Naomi, "you must not do that. 
Go back to your homes, there you shall be cared 
for, and may the Lord deal gently with you." 



Love and Loyalty 75 

The names of these two daughters-in-law were 
Ruth and Orpah. It was Ruth who then spoke 
up and said in words that are not surpassed in 
all the English language : 

"Intreat me not to leave thee, 
Or to return from following after thee; 
For whither thou goest I will go; 
And where thou lodgest I will lodge; 
Thy people shall be my people, 
And thy God my God; 
"Where thou diest will I die, 
And there will I be buried; 
The Lord do so to me, and even more, 
If ought but death part thee and me." 

Great words are these, words of love and 
loyalty. 



Memory Verse, Exodus 20: 12 

"Honour thy father and thy mother; that thy 
days may be long upon the land which the Lord 
thy God giveth thee." 

Memory Hymn [668] 

"O perfect love, all human thought transcending" 



76 The Children's Six Minutes 



KUMMOGOKDONATTOOTTAMMOCTIT- 
EAONGANNUNNONASH 

WHAT do you think of this word? It con- 
tains forty-two letters. 

What does it mean? What language is it? 
It means "catechism." It is the Indian lan- 
guage. 

Now for the story. Many years ago, soon 
after the landing of the first Pilgrim Fathers in 
New England, there was a man by the name of 
John Eliot, who came to this new and unsettled 
country of America. He was a devoted Chris- 
tian, an earnest, patient, persistent missionary. 
He lived for sixty years in Massachusetts, and 
most of those years were spent among the red- 
skins who inhabited that section. He loved 
them, worked with them, learned their language, 
reduced it to writing, then translated for them 
the Scriptures. He was called, and he is still 
known by the name, "Apostle to the Indians." 
The word at the head of the page shows what 
labors he entered into. All this was made pos- 
sible through putting into practice his own 



"Catechism 55 77 

motto, " Prayer and pains, through faith in 
Christ, will do anything." 

What good John Eliot did for the Indians 
some one must have done for the human race. 
Who invented the first alphabet? Who con- 
ceived the idea of letters? Who planned out 
the putting of certain letters together to form 
a word, then placing certain words in a string 
to form a sentence, that sentence conveying an 
idea? Who did all this? We do not know. 
The blessed work has gone on, until the knowl- 
edge of letters is so taken for granted that we 
have a saying, "as plain as A B C." 

The Bible has almost kept pace with language. 
There are few languages to-day into which the 
Word has not been translated. We shall not 
rest until every child of every tongue is able to 
read God's message of love and salvation in the 
language in which he was born. 

Memory Verse, Luke 4: 16 

"And Jesus came to Nazareth . . . and, as his 
custom was, he went into the synagogue on the Sab- 
bath day, and stood up for to read." 

Memory Hymn [200] 

"0 word of God incarnate! 9 



78 The Children's Six Minutes 



WHAT THE TREES SAID TO ME 

ACROSS the street from my home is a large 
and beautiful park. It has inviting, wind- 
ing paths, great quantities of flowers and many 
varieties of trees. Early one summer day, be- 
fore most people were up, I strolled through the 
park. I thought I was all alone, but suddenly 
I heard a voice, "Stand erect. Do not walk with 
stooping shoulders. Head up, shoulders back!" 
Now I confess I was walking, and thinking as I 
walked, with shoulders bent and head forward. 
At once I straightened up and looked about to 
see who was speaking. It was the voice of a 
pine tree, growing hard by the path, tall and 
straight as a plumb line. "Thank you," I said 
to the pine. 

No sooner had I left the pine, and was again 
deep in thought, when I heard another voice. 
"Be courteous, you can never accomplish any- 
thing by scolding, insulting or driving people. 
Be fair and just. Be like Christ, a Christian 
gentleman." Now who in the world is speaking 
to me? I looked everywhere and there was not 



What the Trees Said to Me 79 

the sign of a person in all the park. "Here I 
am/' the voice said. I looked and there, right 
before me, was a graceful elm tree, smiling and 
courteously bowing low to me. "I shall try 
and heed your word," I said. 

Going on my way I was no longer absorbed in 
thought, for I knew that other trees would have 
something to say. Sure enough, "Be steadfast," 
I heard. What tree could that be? I should 
have known at once. The maple, of course. 

Now the white birch beckons. How its face 
shines in the light of the early morning! But 
dark or light I can distinguish it from all its 
fellows. Always white of face and clean of life. 
So I hear it say, "Be clean." 

Turning my steps homeward I said to the 
kindly trees, "Good-by, and thank you. I shall 
never forget this morning's walk." 

Memory Verse, Isaiah 61: 3 

"To give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of 
joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the 
spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees 
of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he 
might be glorified." 

Memory Hymn [745] 

"Into the woods my Master went." 



80 The Children's Six Minutes 



BANKS 

HERE is a bank. I have been reading 
lately about banks. You know that in 
Jesus' day they did not have banks such as we 
have. People took their treasures and jewels 
and hid them in a vessel, or dug a hole in the 
earth and covered their valuable possessions 
with dirt. But now one of the most prominent 
institutions of any community is the bank. 

What does this bank stand for? In the first 
place it means Strength. It is made of very 
heavy, hard material. There is money in this 
bank. It does not belong to me, it is the prop- 
erty of our Beginners' Department. Each Sun- 
day they put their birthday money in here, then 
at the end of the year they open it and the con- 
tents is given to our Sunday School Missionary 
Society. That the money may be kept safe and 
sound to the end of the year the bank is made 
very strong. 

In the second place I notice that there is a 
single opening and that the opening is made 
very small. It is meant for small coins. I could 



Banks 81 

not possibly get a one dollar piece into this 
opening. No, it is meant for dimes, nickels and 
pennies. That is, it stands for Thrift. Each 
little child brings his or her amount, small in 
itself, but when they are all together there is a 
considerable sum. 

Again, I see that this bank is made in the 
form of a church. It is really quite a beautiful 
building. Here is the steeple, here the steps and 
the wide entrance doors, and the windows with 
genuine cathedral glass. I think it is splendid 
to have a bank look like a church, for after all 
a church is a sort of bank. It stands for those 
treasures which Jesus, talked about when he 
said, "Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, 
where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and 
where thieves do not break through and steal." 



Memory Verse, Matthew 6:21 

"For where your treasure is there will your heart 
be also." 



Memory Hymn [208] 

"/ love thy kingdom, Lord." 



82 The Children's Six Minutes 



WORK 

THIS morning I want to talk to you about 
work. "All work and no play makes Jack 
a dull boy." We are sorry for girls and boys 
who are compelled to work, who have little or 
no time for play. Now that is one side. How 
about the other side? All play and no work 
makes Jack — what? There are many words we 
can use here. I have thought about this a long 
time and I have decided that the best word to 
put in here is useless. All play and no work 
makes Jack a useless boy, and of all creatures in 
the world who have no place in the scheme of 
things it is one who is useless. 

Now the men who are useful, we shall find, 
are the men who, as boys, worked as well as 
iplayed. A few days ago I sat at a public dinner 
next to one of the best-known men in this city, 
and a useful man he is. We were talking about 
some of the things boys could busy themselves 
with and earn a little money. I said, "I carried 
papers when I was a boy." He replied, "I car- 
ried papers on the streets of New York City 



Work 83 

when I was a boy." I do not doubt that if we 
could have gone to all the men who sat at that 
dinner each of the one hundred and fifty would 
have answered, "Yes, I worked when I was a 
boy." 

I have here an illustration of work. Here are 
four nuts, a brazil nut, an almond, a walnut and 
a pecan. Each morning as you go to school you 
pass through the park. There in the park the 
squirrels are always to be seen, and to you they 
seem to be ever at play. There are days, warm 
spring days, lovely autumn days, when you do 
not like to go to school, and I hear you say, 
"I wish I could be like these squirrels, playing 
around all day long." But the squirrels do not 
play around all day long. They are at work, 
gathering nuts and storing them away for winter 
use. If I should give these nuts to the squirrels 
they would have to work to open them. All that 
is good in life comes through work. God wants 
us to work as well as play, and play as well as 
work. 

Memory Verse, Matthew 21: 18 

"Son, go work to-day in my vineyard." 

Memory Hymn [422] 

"Work, for the night is coming! 9 



84 The Children's Six Minutes 



THE BIG STORE 

MANY of the girls and boys who read this 
little book live in or near one of the great 
cities where they have huge department stores. 
I love to visit a big store. I have spent hours, 
more likely days, if I should count up all the 
time, in Wanamaker's in New York and Phila- 
delphia, Marshall Field's in Chicago, Hengerer's 
in Buffalo, and Eaton's in Toronto. Any season 
of the year, and almost any hour of the day, 
these stores are thronged with people, for people 
like to go to the big store. 

Now I am thinking of another big store, a 
truly big store, the great big store of Life. We 
have to visit at this store whether we want to 
or not. It is not a matter of choice but of neces- 
sity. Every morning you visit the big store of 
Life. Every evening you return home with what 
you have bought. 

Not only must you visit this store but you 
must also buy. When you visit Wanamaker's 
you do not have to buy unless you choose. In 
the big store of Life, however, you have no 



The Big Store 85 

choice in the matter, you must buy. What must 
you buy? Well, you may buy anything you 
choose. This is the beautiful thing about the 
big store of Life — while we are compelled to 
buy we are permitted to choose. We must also 
pay. 

"Good morning, John, what would you like to 
buy this morning." 

"I think I'll buy a good geography lesson." 

"All right, you can buy that, but you must 
pay the price." 

"What is the price?" 

"Study, earnest study. Never leave the 
preparation until the last minute or trust to 
luck." 

Yes, it is true, right on through every depart- 
ment in the big store of Life, you can buy what- 
soever you choose, but you must pay the price. 

Memory Verse, Pkilippians 4: 8 

"Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things 
are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever 
things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, what- 
soever things are of good report . . . think on 
these things." 

Memory Hymn [332] 

"Thou my everlasting portion/ 9 



86 The Children's Six Minutes 



BREAD 

I HAVE here a loaf of bread. This is good- 
looking bread, is it not? I can almost hear 
you say, "Please pass the bread." That is, I 
hope you say that. I hope you do not say, 
"Gimme the bread." 

Now every girl and boy here knows what it is 
to be hungry, I'm sure of that. And when one 
is real hungry there is nothing that tastes as 
good as bread. Of course there should be some 
butter, or jam, or peanut butter spread over 
the top — my, it makes the mouth water, doesn't 
it! • 

We speak of bread as the staff of life because 
we could not be strong in body if we did not 
have bread. We love ice cream and cake, meat 
and potatoes, and many other things, but our 
meal is not properly balanced unless there is a 
plate of bread on the table. 

Jesus taught us to pray, "Give us this day 
our daily bread." I think this has a twofold 
meaning. It refers to our physical hunger and 
our spiritual needs. All bread comes from the 



Bread 87 

Father above, our Father of love. Do you re- 
member those beautiful lines, 

"Back of the loaf is the snowy flour, 
And back of the flour, the mill ; 
And back of the mill, the seed, and the sun, 
and the shower, 
And the Father's will." 

Jesus once spoke of himself as the Bread sent 
down from above. Our Father gives us daily 
bread for our physical needs, and he has also 
sent us Christ for our spiritual strength. My 
dear young people, take him as your Saviour. 



Memory Verse, John 6: 51 

"I am the living bread which came down from 
heaven." 

Memory Hymn [325] 

"Break thou the bread of life" 



88 The Children's Six Minutes 



GOD'S MEASURE 

HERE I have some measures. This is a 
rule, we call it a folding foot rule. Here 
is a square. And here is a tape measure. There 
are other measures, quarts and pecks and 
bushels. Then there are liquid measures, quarts 
and gallons and barrels. There are also meas- 
ures of weight, ounces, pounds and tons. Now 
these different measures are the same all over 
the United States. A pound of butter in New 
York is the same as a pound of butter in Cali- 
fornia. There are other countries that do not 
have measures like ours. France, for example, 
has the metric system. Should you go into a 
dry goods store in Paris you would not ask for 
a yard of cloth, but for a meter. 

God's measures are the same. God has a 
measure for girls and boys, and that measure is 
the same in Ohio, Mexico, England or Spain. 
If it is wrong to steal in Germany, it is wrong 
to steal in Brazil. If it was wrong to commit 
murder in the first century, it is wrong to take 



God's Measure 89 

life in this century. The Ten Commandments 
are some of God's measures for us. 

John, come up here, I want to measure you. 
Stand there, that's right. I have the mark, 
now let us see how tall you are. Four feet, three 
and one-half inches. That is fine. You are a 
big boy, aren't you? I wish too that I could 
measure you according to God's measure. But 
I cannot do that. You must do that yourself. 
How tall are you as you look at yourself in the 
light of the Saviour's life? According to his 
measure I pray that you may be tall and strong. 



Memory Verse, Ephesians 4: 13 

"Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of 
the knowledge of the son of God, unto a perfect 
man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness 
of Christ." 

Memory Hymn [128] 

"We may not climb the heavenly steeps/' 



90 The Children's Six Minutes 



SLEEP 

1HOPE you had a good sleep last night. I 
hope you sleep well every night. God's 
best gift to his children is sleep. You think 
there are some better gifts, do you? Name 
them. Ah, I thought you were mistaken. The 
more you think about it the more you will agree 
with me that sleep, the Father's loving pro- 
vision for tired people, is a most blessed gift. 

Now God gives sleep not only to girls and 
boys but to all of his creatures. Do you know 
how some of those creatures sleep? I will tell 
you. Elephants and horses commonly sleep 
standing up. How would you like to hear your 
mother say to you, "Robert, it's time to go to 
bed, stand in the corner there and sleep." Most 
birds sleep with the head turned toward the 
tail and the beak poked in under the feathers. 
Storks, gulls and all other long-legged birds sleep 
standing on one leg. It would be more difficult 
to sleep that way than just standing in the cor- 
ner, wouldn't it? The fox and the wolf sleep 
with the tip of the nose and the soles of the 



Sleep 91 

feet close together, and the big, bushy tail cov- 
ering all to keep them warm. Owls sleep in 
the daytime. They have eyelids, and over the 
eyelids, curtains. These curtains are drawn 
across the eyes, sideways, and keep out the 
strong light of the day. Hares, snakes and fish 
sleep with their eyes open. 

Why does God give us sleep? Is it for the 
pleasure of sleeping? No. He gives us sleep 
that our bodies and minds may be refreshed. 
The strength we have expended during the day 
is repaid us in the sleep of the night. Be grate- 
ful to your heavenly Father when to-night you 
kneel to pray : 

"Now I lay me down to sleep." 



Memory Verse, Psalm 127:2 

"So he giveth his beloved sleep." 

Memory Hymn [541] 

"Of all the thoughts of God" 



92 The Children's Six Minutes 



ON TIME 

I ONCE lived in a town of some five thou- 
sand population. In the center of the town 
was a public square, and at the most promi- 
nent corner of the square was a jeweler's store. 
In the window of the store was a clock which 
regulated the coming and going of nearly all 
the inhabitants. You see the children on their 
way to school had to pass this store, and they 
always glanced in the window to see if they 
were on time. People going away had to pass 
this store to get to the depot; they too looked 
at the jeweler's clock to see if they had plenty 
of time to make their train. The men who 
worked in the main factory of the town went 
by this corner; each man as he passed would 
pull out his watch and set it by the jeweler's 
clock. 

Now one morning, for some reason or other, 
the clock was fifteen minutes slow. Children, 
hurrying to school, looked in at the window, 
and, seeing how much time they had they 
loitered and were late. Men and women, going 



On Time 93 

to the train or work, glanced at the clock, as was 
their custom, and, finding that they did not 
have to hurry some missed their train, while 
others were behind time at work. 

We are all human clocks. We set the time 
for others. Your example, girls and boys, has 
much to do with the way other young people, 
your companions, act. If you, Mary, fail to get 
your lessons, some of your friends are going to 
say, "Mary doesn't study much and I'm not 
going to either." Robert, if you indulge in some 
bad habit your chum is going to say, "Robert 
does this and I guess I can too." Is your life 
clock running true? Are you on time? 



Memory Verse, / Peter 2: 21 

"For hereunto were ye called; because Christ also 
suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should 
follow in his steps." 

Memory Hymn [420] 

"True-hearted, whole-hearted! 9 



94 The Children's Six Minutes 



DOORS 

THIS morning, after you were awake, you 
passed through your bedroom door. Then 
you went through the bathroom door. Later 
you entered, through a door, the dining room. 
After a time, with your father and mother, you 
left the house through the outside door. You 
walked down the street and here you are in 
church, having entered through yonder door. 
Every day you are passing through various 
doors. What wonderful things doors are! I 
wonder who invented doors. What would we 
do without doors? 

There are doors to houses and there are doors 
to life. Let me tell you about them. A door is 
made of wood. What beautiful wood is in these 
church doors! The doors of life are made 
of our will. By the exercise of our will we 
open and close whatsoever doors of life we 
choose. 

The doors of our houses swing on hinges. 
Heavy doors seem as light as a feather because 
they are so delicately hung upon hinges. The 



Doors 95 

hinges of the doors of life are made not of brass 
or iron, but of love. 

When, in a little while, you leave this church 
you will take hold of a knob and pull open the 
door. The doors of life have knobs. Those 
knobs are called courtesy. You can open well 
nigh any door you choose if only you will use 
the knob courtesy. 

What about the lock? Yes, doors have locks. 
So also have the doors of life. Can you guess 
what locks the door of life? It is faith. If you 
have faith, faith in God, faith in the Saviour, 
faith in things that are true and pure, you need 
never fear that your house of life will be broken 
into by burglars. You are secure if you have 
the lock of faith. Now here is a strange para- 
dox, namely — you lock your door only by open- 
ing it. Open your door to the Master. 



Memory Verse, Revelations 3: 20 

"Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any 
man hear my voice and open the door, I will come 
in to him, and will sup with him and he with me." 

Memory Hymn [282] 

"O Jesus, thou art standing/' 



96 The Children's Six Minutes 



CHEAPEST AND BEST 

A BUSINESS man would not consider this 
subject a very good advertisement. He 
believes that the best things are never cheapest. 
There are a few instances however in which that 
is not the case. 

First, the air we breathe. It does not cost us 
anything, it isn't metered out to us, so we have 
a saying, "as free as air." You go down to the 
drug store and buy a bottle of perfume. A good 
perfume will cost not less than a dollar a bottle. 
The air we breathe is infinitely purer and better 
than the costliest perfume. 

Second, the water we drink. Do you like ice 
cream soda? I am sure you do. If you do not 
you are not a normal girl or boy. How much 
do you have to pay for a good ice cream soda? 
That depends; some places it is ten cents and 
some fifteen cents. You think you might like 
to have ice cream soda every meal, but you 
would soon tire of it. The water you drink is 
necessary, and it costs you nothing. 

Third, a book, that is this book, the Bible. If 



Cheapest and Best 97 

you wish to buy an up-to-date book of fiction it 
will cost you anywhere from $1.00 to $3.00. 
But here is a book, the most popular, the most 
wonderful book that was ever written. You can 
buy a Bible for a few pennies, and if you do not 
have the pennies there is a great Bible Society 
that will give you a copy, that none may be 
without the Word of Life. 

Finally, the things that are cheapest and best 
are the things of the soul, the spiritual ministries 
and influences of life. They are worship, com- 
munion, faith, hope, prayer and love. No one 
stands at yonder door and demands a dollar of 
you as you enter. The seats in this church are 
free to rich and poor, aged and young. These 
free seats typify the salvation that is here pro- 
claimed. 



Memory Verse, Isaiah 55: i 

"Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the 
waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, 
and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without 
money and without price." 

Memory Hymn [304] 

"/ heard the voice of Jesus" 



98 The Children's Six Minutes 



IN THE DARK 

I HAVE here what are commonly known as 
Chinese lilies. Two weeks ago they were 
only two or three inches high. Now they are 
between two and three feet. How rapidly they 
have grown! How can we account for it? I 
can give one reason. It is because they had 
adequate preparation. The bulbs from which 
these lilies grew were kept in the dark for ten 
days. There, in the dark, they stored up 
strength and energy for the work that was be- 
fore them. 

Many years of our Saviour's life were spent in 
obscurity. They were years when, as far as the 
world is concerned, he was in the dark, prepar- 
ing for the great work of his public ministry. 
My dear young people, do not be fretful over 
the days and years you have to go to school. 
They are not simply days of waiting, they are 
days of preparation. 

Again, these lilies come from dark and humble 
surroundings. Here is a very plain dish. In 
the dish are a few ordinary stones picked up 



In the Dark 99 

in our yard. Water is poured upon the stones. 
Among these stones the lily bulbs take root. 
Girls and boys, it does not matter a great deal 
what sort of a home you have, if only it is a 
good home. John Wesley's youth was hid away 
in a poor Methodist parsonage. Abraham Lin- 
coln was born and grew up in the dark and 
humble surroundings of a log cabin. Our 
Saviour himself was born in a manger, and his 
boyhood home was far from being a palace. 
Make the best of what you have and all will be 
well. God will take care of you and bring you 
out of the darkness. 

How fragrant these lilies are! Faith, hope y 
love, patience, strength and truth, these fra- 
grant qualities of life often grow best in the 
dark. May our good Father make your life 
fragrant is my prayer. 



Memory Verse, Psalm 139: 12 

"Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the 
night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light 
are both alike to thee." 

Memory Hymn [460] 

"Lead, kindly light! 9 



100 The Children's Six Minutes 



THE STILL SMALL VOICE 

WHAT is the loudest noise you ever heard? 
Did you ever hear an immense cannon 
fired? Of course you have heard thunder. The 
loudest, most terrifying noise I ever heard was a 
boiler explosion. The town heating plant was 
only three doors from my home. The whole 
plant blew up one prayer meeting evening. The 
church building was plunged into darkness, the 
walls shook, windows were broken on every side. 
In terror people got down on their knees and 
crept toward the door. That was the loudest 
noise I ever heard. 

Now I have here a hammer. I will drop it to 
the floor. Listen. Is the noise very loud? 
Here I have a heavy railroad spike. Hear the 
noise this makes as it is dropped. And now I 
shall drop this large nail. The noise that made 
is not nearly as loud as the noise occasioned by 
the falling hammer. Here is a small nail. You 
will have to listen very carefully if you hear the 
sound of the nail as it strikes the carpet. Have 
you good ears? Let us test them. Here is an 



< i ' 



The Still Small Voice 101 

ordinary pin. If you keep very quiet you will 
be able to hear the falling of this tiny pin. Do 
not move in your seat. Every one, attention! 
Listen. Did you hear it? Yes, most of you did. 
That pin did not make much noise. No sound 
could be more subdued than a dropping pin. 
Ah, but there is a sound that is infinitely more 
quiet. At the same time it is louder than the 
roll of thunder, or the firing of a huge cannon, 
or the explosion of a great boiler. Some call it 
"conscience." I like to think of it as a voice. 
It is the still, small voice within. When you go 
to do wrong this voice speaks to you. Hear the 
voice, and give good heed. 



Memory Verse, / Kings 19: 12 

"And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord 
was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small 
voice." 

Memory Hymn [320] 

"/ want a principle within" 



102 The Children's Six Minutes 



THANKSGIVING 

WHAT does Thanksgiving mean to you? 
I hear one boy say, "It means a big 
dinner." I think we all agree with him. Who 
does not welcome and enjoy a good dinner! I 
hear Mary say, "Thanksgiving means a day off 
from school." I guess you are right too. School 
is not such a charming place that girls and 
boys are unwilling to have an occasional holi- 
day. 

Now I am going to ask some of the older 
people what the day means to them. There is 
a young woman. She is a stenographer. She 
says, "Thanksgiving means a day away from the 
office. I am at the office every day except Sun- 
day, and I do appreciate, now and then, a day 
that is really my own." Yonder is a traveling 
salesman. What does Thanksgiving mean to 
you? He says, "It means a day at home. Last 
year I spent one hundred and sixty-nine nights 
away from home. I have three children. I 
should like to see them every day. There are 
times when many days pass and I do not see 



Thanksgiving 103 

them. Thanksgiving week I plan to be at 
home." 

There are others I could ask. Each has his 
answer. But Thanksgiving has a special mean- 
ing for us. It is the Harvest time. I have here 
an apple. Isn't this a beautiful apple? What 
color! Who mixed the paints , who handled the 
brush to give such color to this apple? God. 
He, in his infinite love and wisdom, has pro- 
vided, through the unfailing laws of nature, for 
the growth, sweetness, coloring and beautifying 
of all the products of the fields. This apple is 
but one of many kinds of fruits. 

Praise, then, is the great meaning of Thanks- 
giving. God, our heavenly Father, sends us 
every good gift. From his bountiful hand come 
our daily and nightly mercies. We should praise 
him every day. But the day for the united 
chorus of praise is Thanksgiving. 

Memory Verse, Psalm 150: 6 

"Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord. 
Praise ye the Lord." 

Memory Hymn [717] 

"Come, ye thankful people, come/ 9 



104 The Children's Six Minutes 



MARBLES IN THE POCKET 

DO you know what a Missionary Box is? 
Well, I will tell you. It is a box or 
barrel sent from a missionary society in a city 
or town to a missionary family or school on the 
frontier. The box contains clothing, bedding, 
and sometimes toys, dolls and picture books if 
there are children at the frontier end of the 
journey. 

In a certain city one Christmas season the 
children of the Sunday School brought gifts 
to fill a box. Some brought clothes they had 
outgrown. Some who had two coats decided 
they could give one. Others brought books. 
One little girl brought a beautiful doll. She 
had other dolls, and this one she dearly loved, 
but she said, "I want some other little girl to 
be happy, and I think I can get along without 
this doll, though I shall miss her dreadfully." 

One day the committee came together to sort 
the gifts and pack the box. One woman picked 
up a boy's coat. She felt something hard in one 
of the pockets. Another woman said, "Better 



Marbles in the Pocket 105 

look all through those pockets; you can never 
tell what a boy will use his pockets for." So 
she went all through the pockets. In one of 
them she found a soiled handkerchief tied in a 
knot. With much pulling, for it was a hard 
knot, she loosed the little package, and there 
she found five marbles. With the marbles was 
a note scrawled in a boy's hand — 

"Dear boy who gets this coat, 

I have eight marbles. First I put in four for you. 
Then I put in another one. I hope you will like the 
coat, and the marbles. 

From your friend, 

John Mason." 

Now what do you think of that? Isn't it 
glorious? To give more to the other fellow 
than you keep for yourself, especially when that 
other fellow is some one you have never seen, 
is Christlike. 



Memory Verse, Matthew 7: 12 

"All things whatsoever ye would that men should 
do to you, do ye even so to them." 

Memory Hymn [411] 

"0 Master, let me walk with thee! 9 



106 The Children's Six Minutes 



THE FIRST MONTH 

WHAT month is this? December. It is 
the first month in the year. "No, no," 
you say, "December is the last month." I can- 
not entirely agree with you. December is last 
on the calendar but first in importance. Now 
you agree with me, do you not? 

How many days has December? One day. 
"No, no," I again hear you say, "December has 
thirty-one days." I think we can reach an 
agreement on this point too. There is one day 
in December of unexcelled importance and love- 
liness; that day is the twenty-fifth. Yes, we all 
say there is but one day in December. How 
readily we agree when we understand one an- 
other! 

What is the twenty-fifth? It is the pivotal 
day in the history of the world. It is the day 
upon which the King of Kings and the Lord 
of Lords was born. Jesus, son of man and son 
of God, came into the world as we all come, as 
a tiny babe. It brings him much nearer to 
us, does it not, to think that our Saviour was 



The First Month 107 

once as we are? He grew up as a child, a boy, a 
youth, a man. It is the birthday of Christ the 
Saviour we celebrate on the twenty-fifth of each 
December. 

To whom did Jesus come? He came to a 
lowly people. He was revealed first of all to 
the shepherds. The shepherd's task was not an 
enviable one. He was out in the open, subject 
to storms and winds and wild beasts. His busi- 
ness was to shepherd the sheep, to lead them to 
good pasture, to protect them from all harm and 
danger. The shepherd's task was lonely as well 
as lowly. His days and nights were passed in 
solitude. Occasionally a group of shepherds 
would come together, but for the most part they 
were alone with their flocks. God chose these 
people, whose minds were clear, whose lives 
were pure, to be the first messengers of the glad 
tidings of great joy. 

Memory Verse, Luke 2 : 8 

"And there were in the same country shepherds 
abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flocks 
by night." 

Memory Hymn [115] 

"While shepherds watched their flocks." 



108 The Children's Six Minutes 



HIM AND HYMN 

I WANT to tell you to-day about two 
"Hims." The first is a man "Him." The 
second is a song "Hymn." 
v The man "him" is Phillips Brooks. He was 
born in 1835 and died in 1893. He never mar- 
ried, so he had no girls and boys of his own. 
But he loved all children. He had a great, 
warm heart, and in that heart was a big corner 
for all young people. He became a minister. 
His first church was in Philadelphia. Later he 
moved to Boston. He had not been in Boston 
very long when, one night, about midnight, the 
people saw flames breaking out through the roof 
of the church. A sorrowing congregation, with 
their pastor, watched their loved church as it 
burned to the ground. 

When, after the fire, they came together, they 
inquired, "What shall we do? Shall we rebuild 
here or shall we take another location?" 
Finally it was decided to build a new church 
on Copley Square. That was many years ago. 
They built a beautiful temple of worship. It 



Him and Hymn 109 

is still known everywhere as "Phillips Brooks' 
Church/' so wonderfully did his personality 
enter into the project. 

Now the second "hymn." When Phillips 
Brooks was a young man in Philadelphia he 
made a trip to the Holy Land. As Christmas 
drew near he wrote and sent back to the girls 
and boys of his Sunday School, a Christmas 
poem. The organist of his church composed 
music for the words, and this hymn was sung 
for the first time in Trinity church, Philadel- 
phia. It is a beautiful Christmas hymn. Yes, 
it is my favorite. 

"Oh, little town of Bethlehem, 
How still we see thee lie." 



Memory Verse, Matthew 2 : 6 

"Thou, Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not 
the least among the princes of Juda: For out of thee 
shall come a Governor that shall rule my people 
Israel." 

Memory Hymn [121] 

"O little town of Bethlehem! 9 



110 The Children's Six Minutes 



THE CHRISTMAS TREE 

FOR a few years I lived in a country where 
"December is as pleasant as May." The 
weather was warm all through the year. The 
ground was never frozen, for there was never 
any frost. I never saw a snowflake in all the 
years I lived in the tropics. The trees were 
trees of the hot climate, mostly palm, bamboo 
and acacia trees. When Christmas drew near I 
thought the day would be a very dreary day, and 
wholly unChristmaslike because there would be 
no snow, and we would be without our accus- 
tomed tree. 

A few days before our first Christmas in the 
tropics a friend said to me, ."I am sending a 
tree down from the mountains for your chil- 
dren." In due time the tree arrived. You can 
imagine the joy of our entire household when 
they looked upon a genuine, evergreen, Christ- 
mas tree. We set it up in our big "sala," that 
is our living room, and there it remained for 
many days, the delight of our eyes. 

The tree ot tht Christmas season has some 



The Christmas Tree ill 

specifically Christmas messages. First, it is 
evergreen. That reminds us of the eternal 
Saviour, "the same yesterday, to-day and for- 
ever/' At the very tiptop* of the tree we place 
a star. There it shines, high above all else, re- 
minding us of the higher, holier life to which we 
are summoned. The star beckons us to loftier 
aspirations. Christ came down from heaven. 
He became one of us, sharing our human life. 
But he is ever above us as well as with us, lur- 
ing us on to the life of God. The Christmas tree 
is ablaze with lights. Jesus brought light into 
the world. How dark the world would be with- 
out him! About the base of the tree, and sus- 
pended from the branches are many gifts. They 
are tokens of the love and esteem we hold for 
each other, and remind us of God's great gift of 
love, Christ himself. 



Memory Verse, John 3: 16 

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his 
only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him 
should not perish, but have everlasting life." 

Memory Hymn [112] 

"There's a song in the air." 



112 The Children s Six Minutes 



THE BEST WORD 

Tl THAT is the best word! I think I can 
* ▼ hear each of you as he answers. One 
says "Mother is the best word." Another says, 
"Father." Still another, "Daddy." A fourth 
one answers, "Home." Now I hear a voice that 
says, "America." Another voice shouts, 
"Friend." Yes, there are many, many words to 
which we might rightfully give the title "best 
word." 

But for this season of the year, and for this 
particular Sunday, there is one word that stands 
out from among all the others. That one word 
is "Christmas." To-morrow will be Christmas 
day. I think this word "Christmas" is the best 
word because it includes all the other good 
words. 

In your home you have a rug. There are 
many colors in that rug, yet it is all one fabric. 
The many colors are skillfully woven and beau- 
tifully blended to make the one fabric. Think 
of this word Christmas as a rug, made up of 
many words of many colors. We see in this 



The Best Word 113 

rug the word "mother." What would Christmas 
be without mother! We see also the word 
father, and the words sister, brother, grand- 
father, grandmother, aunt, uncle, friend, home. 
Then clearest of all in this wonderful rug is the 
word Christ. Christ is Christmas. Yes, Christ- 
mas is the best word for it gathers within its 
meaning all other good words. 

"This happy day, whose risen sun 
Shall set not through eternity; 
This holy day, when Christ, the Lord, 
Took on him our humanity; 
For little children everywhere 
A joyous season still we make; 
We bring our precious gifts to them, 
Even for the dear Child, Jesus' sake." 



Memory Verse, John i : 4 

"In him was life; and the life was the light of 



men." 



Memory Hymn [107] 

"Joy to the world!" 



114 The Children's Six Minutes 



LAST BUT NOT LEAST 

HOW often have we heard this phrase! 
You girls and boys use it, "Here I am, 
last but not least." 

When Jesus was on earth there was often a 
discussion among the disciples concerning rank 
among them. Some were fearful that they 
would be last. One day a mother, very proud 
of her two sons, as mothers are apt to be, asked 
Jesus to grant permission that her two sons 
might sit, the one on his left hand, the other on 
his right, in the kingdom. Then He made a 
very beautiful as well as perfectly true state- 
ment, "Whosoever will be chief among you, let 
him be your servant; even as the Son of man 
came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, 
and to give his life a ransom for many." 

There was another time, when Jesus sat at 
supper with his disciples, wishing to show them, 
by example, the utter worthlessness of station, 
for station's sake, rose from the table, took a 
towel and basin, and began to wash the disciples' 
feet. Peter objected, but when he understood, 



Last But Not Least 115 

he said, "Not my feet only, but also my hands 
and my head." At the last Jesus said, "Verily 
I say unto you, the servant is not greater than 
his Lord ; neither he that is sent greater than he 
that sent him." 

Girls and boys, if you desire a high place in 
life, begin low. If you want to occupy a lead- 
ing place you must be willing to serve in the 
least. It always has been so, it will never 
change, this great law of life, that he who would 
be first must be willing to be last. It is the 
eternal law of service. 



Memory Verse, Mark 10: 31 

". . . But many that are first shall be last; and 
the last first." 

Memory Hymn [402] 

"Hark, the voice of Jesus calling." 

THE END 



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